438 lbs gone in 5 days - My Build Story

[RWebb]

"got a very accurate scale and weighed EVERYTHING ...listed every item by the Porsche Part Number"

Wow - now _that_ is attention to detail. Great job. The bumper car people have needed something like this for quite a while now.

Distribution of data is something we should all think about - you can't just post copies as those can't be treated digitally, only as an image.

Emailing copies gets tiresome and takes a lot of labor for the person who distributes. I've had people put copies of my data on their web sites as Excel and Word files. But never figured ut how to do it myself.

Google has some sort of appl. that can make an Excel compatible spreadsheet available to groups of people. That might be useful.

[ShakinJoe]

Front Bumper, Rear Bumper, Seats.

[ShakinJoe]

Originally Posted by RWebb

"got a very accurate scale and weighed EVERYTHING ...listed every item by the Porsche Part Number"

Wow - now _that_ is attention to detail. Great job. The bumper car people have needed something like this for quite a while now.

Distribution of data is something we should all think about - you can't just post copies as those can't be treated digitally, only as an image.

Emailing copies gets tiresome and takes a lot of labor for the person who distributes. I've had people put copies of my data on their web sites as Excel and Word files. But never figured ut how to do it myself.

Google has some sort of appl. that can make an Excel compatible spreadsheet available to groups of people. That might be useful.

RWebb,

I am not sure how I will do it, but I will make it available. It is something that will be updated often. I have website that I can direct people to for download, but I will wait until project completion.

[ShakinJoe]

Here we go, it is time to get started on this project. I do like anyone else would do. Pull it out of the garage and just stare for about 10 minutes wondering where to start and the nervous anticipation knowing that I have not done this before!! (Kind of like your first cougar mom, but that is a different post) If you are in this same situation or contemplating it; it is fun. Because I am starting and I have no bleeping idea where I am going and what I will uncover. I have seen many pictures of shell interiors, and of course many race cars...but this is my car!!




I decided to post the parts on my local PCA site, which I did a week earlier and got no action. I then posted them on Pelican and it was like a feeding frenzy! I had a bunch of stuff pre-sold which mandated that I get my butt in gear. I hope those who bought those parts have subscribed to my thread. Every one of my purchasers have been great to deal with and I think they got great parts for the money!! Packing stuff up and shipping it accross the country adds reality to "this thing ain't coming back". In fairness though, that is what I wanted. I talked with a lot of people that advised me to get rid of it, and I did not want to have regrets. SOOOO, back to the teardown. the foglights were sold, so I had to get those off. Same with the front nudge strip , Lower Valence and Spoiler assy, Compressor, Carpet Set, Rear Seats, Rear Deck Cover...you get the picture. So I started with the F&R bumpers. Simple procedure but getting those accordians off was not the easiest job, especially by the front oil cooler fan. If I had to do it again, I would pressure wash the under carriage first to avoid the 3 lbs of dirt and sand that fell in my eyes and hair.

Here is the rear bumper off picture. Please notice how much the rear end came up after the bumper came off. It is at this point that I said to myself ; "self, you should really weigh this stuff". So I went and got a scale that is used to weigh refrigerant very precisely. By the way, the car keeps getting higher and higher and my photos on next few posts are pretty awe inspiring.






Next I attack the compressor. It comes out easy peasy, but then I notice this monster bracket underneath it that extends through the engine pan. More work I guess and one more look at the Pet file to see how to remove it.





I am pretty dirty by now and have gone through 3 sweatsoaked t-shirts. Wife is saying "how much longer?" and the moskitos are in full force, but that passenger seat is staring right at me! Plus it does not "look" like I have done much, and I kind of figured that the seat out would end my night on a high, and it worked. I would highly recommending taking your seat out if you have spun your wheels and just need a boost. Here is before and after.






Wifey and kids have been around me all day, but really have not noticed the hard work of the bumpers. But when they see the seat out, they all freak out!! Comic relief after a long day is very useful. I will get back to work next Saturday July 26. But for now, I will get the scale and start weighing all of the stuff that came out.

Next posts (sometime this week) will include:

• Bumper Shocks
• Complete Interior
• A/C System
• Rocker Side Panels
• Door Panels
• Engine Compartment Blower for Heat
• Weights Weights and More Weights!!

Thanks for subscribing to all of those who have!!

[Beetle Bailey]

Sub'ed

[Flieger]

Wow!

Great Work!

The car looks great on the track. I am sure it will be as fast as it looks when you are done.

Your precise attention to detail in documenting the parts weights and removal is very impressive.

Have fun with your son when he wants to help!

[ShakinJoe]

Anyone out there have a RADIO that we can weigh? I sold it prior to weighing it!!

Also, I need help on 87-89 Torsion Bar Holes. and pics of your fix?

[ennisk1]

Why put anything in the holes? Leave them open...it saves weight!! BTW, my car looked like a Dakar rally car when the weight was taken off! I'll post a pic if I can find one.

[ShakinJoe]

On the 87-89 Carrera, the torsion bar hole looks like this (see below) when the lower skirt and rubber are removed. It just looks sloppy in my opinion.

Has anyone fixed this issue?

[tnchris]

Very cool and informative. Sub'd.

[Flieger]

You can either:

Put the torsion bar access covers back on

or

Weld on some early quarter panels to get the smaller hole but loose the accessiblity to your G-50 bent torsion bars

or

Get some fiberglass quarter panels and screw them on with quarter-turn Dzeus fasteners so that you can remove the panel when you need to access the torsion bar- how often is that?

This is the lightest, raciest option. You get the weight off the rear, too. If you track your car, it is easy to replace when they get sand-blasted at speed around the track or get damaged while you push your way to the front.

I like GT Racing fiberglass. I just left the fasteners unpainted on mine. I can post a photo if you want.

You can get special resin/fiberglass ratios for "race" that are lighter because they squeeze out excess resin.

[EarlySport]

My solution for 87+ Torsion bar access holes is here;

Another IROC build - Aussie RHD 3.8

Basically I took the original G50 torsion bar access panel and hole-sawed an appropriate hole in the centre, massaged it, and then welded it back on. It's a pretty close match to an early torsion bar hole minus the flange ( which you could put in if you so desired.. )

[ennisk1]

Oh, that is different...I've spent too much time with early cars! I would find some one at a small metal shop or body shop to modify the covers you took off. Fabricate a templete out of some sheet metal as an example.

My guess is that you'll still need to have suitable access if and when you need to get the rear torsion bars out. This is not too big of a deal, too bad your on the other coast of Florida, the guy that does my paint and body could whip something up in a jiffy.

[ShakinJoe]

Originally Posted by Flieger

You can either:

Put the torsion bar access covers back on

or

Weld on some early quarter panels to get the smaller hole but loose the accessiblity to your G-50 bent torsion bars

or

Get some fiberglass quarter panels and screw them on with quarter-turn Dzuss fasteners.

This is the lightest, raciest option. You get the weight off the rear, too. If you track your car, it is easy to replace when they get sand-blasted at speed around the track or get damaged while you push your way to the front.

I like GT Racing fiberglass. I just left the fasteners unpainted on mine. I can post a photo if you want.

You can get special resin/fiberglass ratios for "race" that are lighter because they squeeze out excess resin.

Can you post photo?

[ShakinJoe]

Originally Posted by EarlySport

My solution for 87+ Torsion bar access holes is here;

Another IROC build - Aussie RHD 3.8

Basically I took the original G50 torsion bar access panel and hole-sawed an appropriate hole in the centre, massaged it, and then welded it back on. It's a pretty close match to an early torsion bar hole minus the flange ( which you could put in if you so desired.. )

Excellent work Early Sport and Thanks!!

[Flieger]

Can do

How often do you need to access the torsion bars, anyway?

They really aren't that visible while at speed.


photo credit: Zach Mayne
photo credit: Zach Mayne

[ShakinJoe]

Flieger,

You just gave me a kick-ask idea!! Thanks.

[snbush67]

Excellent thread, really great work! I am staying tuned!

[Dottore]

subscribed

[84Euro]

+1